Several recent suspicious fires in vacant houses in Dayton have residents concerned.
The most recent occurred Sunday on Leonard and Troy streets and Dayton fire crews said it was the second time they had been dispatched to that address. The fire was deemed suspicious because there was no utility service connected to the house.
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Neighbors want something done before someone gets hurt.
“I have fear for my son’s safety because he could be out playing with someone and he not know about it and get in trouble,” Lindsey Thompson told WHIO-TV’s Malik Perkins on Monday.
Thompson also said the burned houses bring down the overall value of the neighborhood.
“With this being on fire the second time, it needs to be tore down,” she said.
On Aug. 4, another fire occurred on Hunter Avenue that was started at the front of the structure, fire investigators determined. A man who lives next door checked on the fire.
“I actually went on the porch and took a look at what was going on and I see a gas can on the porch so I don’t know if it is suspicious or whatever it may be. The next thing is we need to get to the bottom line of it,” said the next-door resident, Philip Harris.
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Dayton Fire Department officials acknowledge the recent multiple suspicious fires, but said they appear to be random and unrelated.
The recent fires are under investigation, department officials said, and investigators hope to make an arrest -- or arrests -- if the fires are determined to be arson.
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